Glenelg Country School

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Glenelg Country School is an American independent day school in Glenelg, Maryland. It was founded in 1954. It is a learning facility of grades pre-kindergarten to twelve.

What is today known as "Glenelg Manor" forms the nucleus of a sprawling structure, which houses the Glenelg Country School elementary division. The "Manor House" portion was itself built in two sections: the old "L" wing dating from the middle or late 1700s, and the newer front section built circa 1845. The original house is believed by many historians to have been erected by Ephraim Howard, son of Sarah Dorsey Howard who received the land from her father, John Dorsey, in 1735 as part of her dowry. Sarah's husband, Henry Howard, called the property "Howard's Resolution."

General Joseph Tyson, Assistant Postmaster General under President John Tyler, added the newer part of the mansion, which is of Norman Tudor style, circa 1845. The massive granite blocks used as decoration in the addition were quarried near Ellicott City, while the marble at the entrance and in the fireplaces was imported from England. The spacious rooms were of such dimension that each had one or more fireplaces. General and Mrs. Tyson called their home "Glenelg" after an old estate in Scotland and "because it spelled the same from either end."[citation needed]

The original building was rented in 1954 when Glenelg Country School was founded by Kingdon Gould, Jr. and his wife Mary Thorne Gould, along with Mr. and Mrs. John T. Mason, Jr., Judge James Macgill and Mr. and Mrs. William Shippen. Originally, the school included 35 students, enrolled in grades K through eight, and a faculty of five. Miss Marjorie Dunn was the first Headmistress.

The current headmaster is Gregory J. Ventre, who succeeded Ryland Chapman III when he retired in 2007.

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[edit] Athletics

In 2007, the Varsity and Junior Varsity Basketball both won their division championships over Annapolis Area Christian School. In 2008, the Varsity Tennis team won the "B" conference Championship over Spalding.

[edit] Drama

In the 2007-2008 school year, Cappies director and Glenelg drama teacher Carol Graham Lehan and the Glenelg music teacher Tom French revamped an old work of his, Aesop's Foibles, as their spring production. The show centered around a confused, flighty muse named Thalia, who is sent to help Aesop finish his book of stories. Meanwhile, the fox from "the Fox and the Grapes" is trying to steal the book and rewrite the stories to make himself the starring character, and constant intervention from Thalia's sly sister Terpsi made the show amusing. Junior Maeve Ricaurte starred as Thalia, and senior Collin Lyons portrayed Aesop. Comic actor and senior Shreyo Banjeree played the sneaky, deceptive fox, and senior dance captain and choreographer Emma Murphy captivated the audience with her amazing choreography as well as her role as Terpsi.

[edit] Exchange Program with St. Michael Indian School

In the 2006-2007 school year, headmaster Ryland Chapman started what is anticipated to be an annual exchange program with the St. Michael Indian School on the Navajo Reservation in Arizona. In the fall, thirteen Glenelg eighth and ninth graders hosted St. Michael students in their respective grades. That spring, the Glenelg students flew to Arizona to stay with the students they had hosted. The Glenelg participants were eighth graders Holly Romans, Caroline Hyde, Allie Gross, Natalie Burke, Ben Koffel, Jim Moxley and Ben Smith and ninth graders Trevor Baum, Derek Hayward, Jillian Shure, Erica Murphy, Tori Johnson, and Amy Schaffman.

The second year of the exchange program went just as smoothly. This year, however, the program was in reverse. The Glenelg students went to Arizona first, and hosted in the spring. This year's Glenelg participants were eighth graders Olivia Clark, Jordan Brody, Taylor Smith, Pooja Yadav, Reid and Sam Shafley, and Marisa Jack; ninth graders Lindsey Rhodes, Neha Jhaveri, Matt Curran, Danni Weiner, and Jim Moxley; and tenth graders Jillian Shure and Maria Sloan.

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